blockchain: Last News

Andrew Wallenstein President and Chief Media Analyst At a time when the creative community is aligned on the picket lines in their disenchantment with the entertainment industry, there’s an innovative new outfit blazing a new path to creating and distributing content. Led by veterans of Disney, Warner Bros. and DreamWorks, Toonstar bills itself as a “Web3 story studio” capable of developing, producing and financing animated projects powered by the blockchain. CEO and co-founder John Attanansio sees an opening for attracting talent looking for new ways to reach an audience. Listen to the podcast here: “There are trends in Hollywood right now that, honestly, I think make it easier,” he said on the latest episode of the Variety podcast “Strictly Business.” “You can see especially what’s happening now: There are a lot of productions that are getting canceled or halted, things will sit in development for extended periods of time. It’s just getting harder and harder to get something made in the traditional system.”

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Scott Greenberg, the co-founder and CEO of Fox-owned animation studio Bento Box Entertainment, is exiting the company, Variety has confirmed. Greenberg is also the CEO of Fox’s Web3 media and creative technology company Blockchain Creative Labs (BCL). He will officially depart both roles on May 19. “It’s been an incredible honor and privilege to work alongside the many people who have helped build Bento Box and Blockchain Creative Labs into two great companies,” Greenberg said. “The many series and projects we launched together are a great source of lasting pride to me. Deep down, I’m an entrepreneur at heart who enjoys building organizations and nurturing their teams to bring out the best in themselves. With Bento Box and BCL running full steam ahead on the path for continued growth and success, now is the time to explore new opportunities.”

Workaholics co-creator Dominic Russo, Jon Heder (Napoleon Dynamite) and Tony Cavalero (School of Rock) have partnered on Space Junk, an adult animated workplace comedy about garbage collectors in space, from Web3 story studio Toonstar. The series, created by written by Russo and starring Heder and Cavalero, Space Junk will world premiere Thursday at Consensus 2023, with episodes available to stream beginning May 19. You can watch the series here.

Naman Ramachandran Crossmint, a start-up that provides infrastructure for building blockchain applications, has partnered with Tintinimaginatio, the company which has been set up to protect and promote the work of Hergé, to release the iconic Tintin comic series’ first NFT collection. In partnership with artèQ, the collection comprises the illustration “The Blue Lotus,” which was created by Hergé in 1936 and auctioned for €2.6 million ($2.8 million) in early 2021. The NFT collection includes two variants of “The Blue Lotus” NFTs, a limited edition print work of which only 777 copies were created and a purely digital NFT that is available in a similarly limited version of 1,777 pieces.

Elon Musk has made a noticeable change on Twitter. On Monday, without an explanation, the social media site debuted a new logo on the web version.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Elon Musk is now using the design of Twitter itself to make hilarious (?) jokes. On Monday, without warning, the iconic Twitter bird logo on the home button of the social network’s web version changed to the “doge” of the Dogecoin cryptocurrency. (Twitter’s mobile apps weren’t changed.) The doge image (of a Shiba Inu) is part of the logo of the Dogecoin blockchain and cryptocurrency, which was created as a joke in 2013 — to mock other cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. Musk, who bought Twitter last fall in a $44 billion deal, is a well-known superfan of the Doge meme and he has promoted Dogecoin both on Twitter and during his appearance last year hosting “Saturday Night Live.” After the change to Twitter’s web logo Monday, the value of Dogecoin rose more than 20%.

Naman Ramachandran The future is Web3 was the consensus at a high-powered panel discussing the subject at Hong Kong’s FilMart on Wednesday. Weighing in with their knowledge and experience were Evan Auyang, group president, Animoca Brands; Jenefer Brown, executive VP and head of global products and experiences, Lionsgate; Lucas Cheungmanaging partner, Hong Kong, Gusto Collective and Jaeson Ma co-founder, 88rising, OP3N and EST Media. For the benefit of the lay people in the audience, Ma provided a handy definition of what exactly Web3 is. Ma explained that web1 was a phase where people could search for and read content, web2 is where companies were able to publish content and web3 is all about ownership.

DEALSChrysalis Records has signed a new agreement with Secretly Distribution covering all physical and digital distribution for the label. “I have long been an admirer of the Secretly Group of companies and the incredible music that they release on their various labels”, says Chrysalis CEO Jeremy Lascelles. “So, when the moment came to reappraise our global distribution arrangements, it was clear to us that there was no better possible partner”.————————————————–DIGITALBeatport is launching a Web3 digital collectible marketplace.

EXCLUSIVE: Haylie Duff is the latest Napoleon Dynamite alumnus to join the cast of animated blockchain pilot Cyko KO.

EXCLUSIVE: Krapopolis has scored a third season renewal before a frame of the animated series has been seen by the viewing public.

Sara Smith As search engines, social media and data science continue to measure levels of influence online, innovative leaders and entrepreneurs have consistently stood out from millions of other people and companies competing for attention. KOL (Key Opinion Leaders), a platform that uses data science to identify and benchmark the influence of experts within specific fields, has identified 10 individuals across various industries and predicts that each will have a significant impact on online searches in 2023. “Their innovative approaches and forward-thinking perspectives will disrupt the traditional search norms and drive the growth of new technologies. KOL expects that with the trends these people set, their respective industries will follow suit,” says Ana Codallo, the platform’s chief technology officer. “By breaking down traditional barriers and pushing the boundaries of what is possible, these pioneers are poised to make a lasting impact on the online search landscape in 2023 and beyond.”

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Fox and its Web3 media company Blockchain Creative Labs has launched “The Masked Singer Experience,” a new online, interactive community for fans, featuring live show voting polls, exclusive paid-member content, a points leaderboard and an online rewards store. The new experience went live at maskverse.com on Wednesday morning ahead of the “Masked Singer’s” primetime Season 9 premiere on Fox. Per Fox, “During episodes throughout the season, fans will be able to scan on-air QR codes to play along and vote on which character they believe will progress on to the next round.” This fan voting will not affect the series outcome, according to the network.

EXCLUSIVE: Paris Hilton is to play matchmaker in the metaverse.

EXCLUSIVE: Web3 media and entertainment firm Doodles is set to acquire transatlantic animation studio Golden Wolf. 

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Warner Bros. Discovery has become the first major studio to sell a movie’s NFT bundle,with The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring dropping tomorrow.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Fanatical collectors of Peter Jackson’s “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” will get the chance to buy limited-edition multimedia nonfungible token (NFT) versions of the fantasy epic. Warner Bros. Home Entertainment is teaming with blockchain company Eluvio to launch “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” (Extended Version) Web3 Movie Experience, which will be available in two different editions that drop Friday, Oct. 21 at web3.wb.com. It’s the first time a major studio is releasing a movie as NFTs, which are unique identifiers that verify ownership of digital content. “The Fellowship of the Ring” NFTs are the first ones to be available in the “WB Movieverse,” a new marketplace that will in the future include other titles from the studio. Jessica Schell, GM and EVP, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, said future releases are yet to be determined. On the platform, fans will be able to buy, sell and trade movie NFTs.

A devastating natural disaster hit the USA this week, killing several and doing billions of dollars in damage. So many Floridians lost their homes…

EXCLUSIVE: The main cast of cult classic indie comedy Napoleon Dynamite are reuniting for an animated pilot released through blockchain technology.

Liza Foreman Launched in 2018 as part of a San Sebastián Festival initiative to become a hub for fast-tracking new tech film-TV initiatives, this year’s expanded edition of the Zinemaldia & Technology event, the Zinemaldia Start Up Challenge, awarded three prizes on Thursday for the best Spanish, best entrepreneurial and best European projects after a morning of pitching. Best Spanish project went to the innovative music app Motmo.pro from Bruno de Zabala and Janire Vázquez. Entrepreneurial Project prize was won by Mine S. from Riccardo Belingheri, and Massimiliano Moioli from Italy. Both projects receive $10,000 ($10,000). The Spanish brother and sister team, Teresa Benítez Martínez and Francisco Benítez Martínez, took home €3,000 for best European project for kino_greentoken.